Impacts of reduced water availability on vegetative and reproductive traits of a Solanum species

Abstract

While drought is known to affect crop yields negatively, there is limited knowledge of the strategies used by animal‐pollinated plants to cope with such conditions. In this study, we simulated low and moderate drought conditions in a greenhouse experiment and examined the vegetative and reproductive traits of a buzz‐pollinated species (Solanum lycopersicum). Our findings indicate that individuals exposed to both drought conditions decreased in height and bore fewer leaves but increased in the ratio of root length to dry mass. The number of flowers produced per day and the overall flower production were higher in plants under control conditions. We found no differences in the onset of flowering between the treatments, but the plants exposed to low drought showed peak flowering earlier. Among the morphometric traits, flower height, floral diameter, petal length, and petal width were significantly lower in both drought conditions. Individuals in the moderate‐drought treatment displayed greater variation in reproductive traits than those in the low‐drought treatment. Overall, drought stress negatively impacted the aboveground vegetative growth and the reproductive efforts of plants.